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The Internet and Online Research for Teachers |
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Beyond the Internet and World Wide Web—Online and Library Resources This chapter focuses on the use of online library resources. It is new to the third edition and is written by John Renaud, Education Subject Specialist at the University of Miami Libraries. We have included it in this revised edition because of what we believe is an increased need to integrate resources found only in library settings with what is available through the Internet and World Wide Web. We begin with John’s own experience as a first-year teacher, before he went back to graduate school to train to become an information specialist. The Library as A Resource: A True Story
My first year as a public school teacher was an eventful one, through which I learned more about the power of libraries than I had working on any of my degrees. I was hired the day before school started to teach a multi-grade middle level class for students identified as at risk. I had no idea where to begin. On my way home, after an unspeakably brutal first day on the job, the obvious struck me: Maybe if I came up with something constructive for the students to do, which did not highlight skill deficits, we might all actually enjoy ourselves, and maybe even learn something. I stopped at the only place in my tiny hometown that might have these resources, my public library.
Using the online card catalog (which I later learned I could access online from home), I found several books about active learning projects, using art to teach critical thinking, and using activities to reinforce reading. Then I started browsing the surprisingly extensive juvenile collection available in the library. I found several high interest books for students reading below grade level. I borrowed a few and noted the others to order for my classroom.
After reading though many books of activities and learning projects at the library, I sped down the Interstate to the nearest crafts store, and spent a lot of the paycheck I hadn’t received yet on the classroom supplies I would need. The only thing missing in this equation was the librarian or information specialist. I know now that if I had gone to the reference desk, a librarian could have helped me locate a long list of high interest, low reading ability books, rather than the few I had stumbled across. I know that she could have guided me to book reviews, so I could have selected handbooks with the most practical tips on working with at risk students. She could have guided me to the AskERIC website online, and showed me where to find lesson plans. In short, she could have given me a coherent overview of the information world I was in, and saved me from cobbling together a plan from widely disparate sources. She might also have suggested that the state university library, with its extensive research collection in the field of education and separate curriculum materials center would have been a good resource. She could have also recommended my school librarian, a fellow professional, as a good source for information and resources about working with my students. As it is, I never considered these possibilities until the following year. I was never more then a few steps from this assistance, but didn’t know it was there.
Had I taken the time to talk to a librarian and to do a reference interview, I would have been much better off. Now, the excuses for avoiding this step are fewer. Most libraries will answer reference questions over the phone. Many libraries will answer reference questions via email. Some libraries now even offer live chat, which is like using an instant messaging service, except instead of your friends and family, a skilled reference librarian will assist you.
Always remember, teaching is an interdisciplinary, collaborative endeavor. Libraries, with their cross-disciplinary, collaborative focus, are a great resource for effective teachers.
The links in the rest of this chapter will show you where to get more information, ideas, and inspiration for using library resources, online and off.
Exploring Library Resources on the Web
Many university and public libraries are making their catalogs available through the World Wide Web. It is almost certain that your university or college will have a library web site and that you will be able to connect to it. In order to find the web address for your school’s library, do a general search for your university’s home page. Once you get to the home page, there will almost certainly be a menu item or link to your school’s library.
Below is a link to a directory of academic libraries in the United States. Many state university libraries offer access for residents, even if they are not affiliated with the university. Nearly every library will have contact information for reference questions, and information about available library sources. Remember, academic libraries will typically give first priority to requests from their constituencies (their own students, faculty, staff, and administration), but, generally speaking information specialists in most institutions are happy to help other researchers as well.
Library WWW Servers http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Libweb/Academic_main.html
The American Association of School Librarians’ page contains information about the competencies and standards that school librarians, also known as school library media specialists, teach and reinforce. Whether you are doing a practicum, are in your first years of teaching, or are an old hand in the profession, be sure to talk to your school’s librarian. School librarians are required to take very specific coursework to earn their degrees. They specialize in working with students at the elementary, middle, or high school level. Librarianship by definition is a collaborative profession. Good professionals will be happy to work with you.
American Association of School Librarians http://www.ala.org/aasl/
Included below is a site featuring successful web projects that resulted from the collaboration of teachers of many subjects and school librarians. These projects stress the interrelationship between the world of information and the world of the classroom.
Visalia Teacher Learning Center Collaboration Pages http://www2.visalia.k12.ca.us/library/collaboration/
Sponsored by the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University, this page provides to school library sites nationwide. Many of the sites feature examples of teacher-librarian collaboration and the use of web based materials to support the curriculum objectives. This is a great site to visit to see what’s going on with school libraries on the web.
School Libraries.Net http://www.school-libraries.net/
Association of College and Research http://acrl.telusys.com/cmc/intro/intro.html
Subscription Databases
Below are links to online academic databases that can be found in many college and university libraries. Subject specific databases can be searched to find journal articles on a topic. Below, we have highlighted three databases frequently used in the field of education. The links are to information about the databases. To actually access the database, you will need to contact the library at your college or university. Remember that even if your local library does not have a particular database, many databases overlap in what they cover. So, you may be able to find what you need in another database. Bear in mind also that while many of the products below have excellent instructions and help options, the information specialist at your library will have extensive experience with the resources in his or her area, so you should not hesitate to seek assistance.
The ERIC database, maintained by the U.S. Department of Education, is the largest database in the field of education. To learn about its holdings, content, and searchability, click below:
Educational Resource Information Center (ERIC) http://library.dialog.com/bluesheets/html/bl0001.html
The Social Science Citation Index is a vital tool for researchers. This allows you to see how an article that you are interested in has been used by other researchers, and can thereby help you expand your research. For information about how it works, use this link:
Social Science Citation Index http://www.isinet.com/products/citation/ssci/
PsycINFO ia one of the oldest databases, dating back to 1877. For topics related to educational psychology, child psychology, and adolescent psychology, this database is a goldmine.
PsycINFO http://library.dialog.com/bluesheets/html/bl0011.html
Sociological Abstracts is another large database, where one can often locate information about the social forces that influence education as well as multicultural and cross cultural issues in education. To learn about this tool visit: Sociological Abstracts http://www.csa.com/csa/factsheets/socioabs.shtml
EBSCO is a major vendor of electronic databases. It is likely that your university or public library will have some EBSCO resources. Many EBSCO products offer electronic full text. To learn about their products, visit the following web site:
EBSCO http://www.epnet.com/default.asp
Another major vendor of electronic projects is ProQuest. Like EBSCO, ProQuest provides many databases to different types of libraries. To learn about ProQuest projects, visit:
ProQuest http://www.proquest.com/pa-product.shtml
Gale, which publishes both print and online materials, is another major vendor, whose products you may well see in either an academic or public library setting. For information about their projects and resources, click below:
Gale Group http://www.galegroup.com/servlet/BrowseMediaServlet?region=9&imprint=000&id=OEH
Sometimes referred to as Silverplatter, Webspirs, or Ovid, the databases that are available through Ovid are often found in academic libraries. For information about Ovid resources, visit:
Ovid http://www.ovid.com/site/catalog/Catalog_DataBase.jsp?top=2&mid=3&bottom=7&subsection=10
Resources Available from Public Libraries
If you are not affiliated with a university library but need to access academic resources, your public library will often be able to borrow materials from other libraries. Most public librarians will go to amazing lengths to answer patrons’ information needs. Public libraries are now offering many services online, including email reference service and sometimes, chat reference. Don’t overlook this valuable resource. To find out about libraries in your area, visit the following site.
USA Public Libraries on the Web http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Libweb/Public_main.html
The Association for Library Service to Children provides information about children’s and youth librarians, and the services they offer. Their website links to resources about activities and projects that reinforce children and youth reading. Your local public library may well have a librarian who specializes in youth services, and who can be a great resource to you in your work as a teacher.
Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) http://www.ala.org/alsc/
St. Joseph’s County Public Library is a good example of what you might find at your local public library’s web pages. Note that you can search the catalog, ask a question via their live chat service, email a question to a reference library, or even participate in a blog conversation:
St. Joseph County Public Library http://sjcpl.lib.in.us/
This link is to the largest public library in the world.
New York Public Library Home Page http://www.nypl.org/
Live chat reference allows you to chat online with a librarian in real time. Originally developed for public libraries in California, 24/7 Reference is both software and a system for delivering live chat reference. While their participants tend to be concentrated in the West, the link below will take you to a list of all participating libraries.
24/7 Reference http://www.247ref.org/communities.htm
Many libraries have formed consortia to answer research questions via live chat. Remember that libraries are continually updating their services, so even if there is not a link here, it will be worth it to check with your local public library to inquire about live chat reference. For a list of libraries currently providing this type of service see:
Collaborative Live Reference Services http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~b-sloan/collab.htm
An interesting article overviewing chat reference that appeared in the online journal The Teaching Librarian is available at the following address:
Chat Reference http://www.teachinglibrarian.org/chat.htm
Using Online Resources in Your Library
Libraries have traditionally been text-based operations. With the advent of the Internet and World Wide Web, they increasingly depend on online or electronic periodicals, indexes, and abstracting services. Learning how to access these resources is an ongoing process and can appear daunting at first. In the following section, we try to provide a general overview of several of the most useful subscription resources you will find in your college or university’s library.
Many libraries have extensive instructional pages that provide a general introduction to doing research using online sources. The authors of this book, for example, have collaborated with Carrie Leslie, Latin American and Communication Studies Subject Specialist at the University of Miami Libraries,in the development of an online tutorial for using electronic library resources. You can access this tutorial at the following address:
Research Basics in a Digital World http://scholar.library.miami.edu/researchbasics/
The State University of New York at Albany includes an extensive site for using online databases. You can visit their site at:
Using Electronic Resources (State University of New York at Albany Libraries) http://library.albany.edu/usered/eltools/main.html The University of Texas at Austin has developed a widely used interactive training model for library information skills.
Texas Information Literacy Tutorial http://tilt.lib.utsystem.edu/
Cornell University provides an interactive guide that covers the major functions of library research. It is well arranged around resources at Cornell, its content is widely applicable.
Library Research at Cornell, a Hypertext Guide http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/research/tutorial.html
The Explorer tutorial at the University of Iowa offers library research and Internet search tips. Its well-arranged table of contents will help you link to the information that you need. While the catalog information and links to library subscription databases may not be the same for your library, this site does a good job of covering the basics on online library research.
University of Iowa http://explorer.lib.uiowa.edu/
Created for University of Central Florida students, but useful for everyone, this tutorial includes instruction and quizzes. You will need to create a password and register, which you can do at:
University of Central Florida http://reach.ucf.edu:8900/public/libtut/
Focusing on both World Wide Web and library specific resources, this series of tutorials includes quizzes and provides users instant feedback.
Information Navigator (University of Utah) http://www-navigator.utah.edu/module3/index.htm
A good site for online library resource instruction is available from the University of California at Berkeley Libraries.
Library Research Guides (University of California at Berkeley Libraries) http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/
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